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New Jersey Arrests; German Terror Ring Busted?

Aired September 06, 2007 - 14:00   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

FREDRICKA WHITFIELD, CNN ANCHOR: He lived his life like an opera, but his musical tastes were as deep and wide as his amazing voice.
DON LEMON, CNN ANCHOR: Yes. And that, too -- look on the left -- that, too, is Luciano Pavarotti. He traded in the white tie and tails for a luau shirt and the Spice Girls.

Well, this hour, we remember "The Maestro" with the help of another music legend, Aretha Franklin.

Remember she had to fill in for him?

WHITFIELD: Yes.

LEMON: We'll talk about that.

Hello, everyone. I'm Don Lemon, live at the CNN world headquarters in Atlanta.

WHITFIELD: And I'm Fredricka Whitfield, in today for Kyra Phillips.

You're in the CNN NEWSROOM.

LEMON: Live pictures now from the Modena cathedral. That is in Modena, Italy, Luciano Pavarotti's hometown.

We're awaiting his coffin to come here. This is where the funeral will be held on -- it's the main service there on Friday.

So on Saturday, the mayor said that he's going to hold this service, I should say, in his hometown of Modena. And then Friday, I should say, his body or the coffin will be unveiled.

The main service on Saturday. Friday, the coffin will be unveiled.

Thousands gathering outside that cathedral there, of course, to mourn that loss and to pay tribute to his life, which we will do today right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

WHITFIELD: Right. Folks have come from far and wide to be at that very location. We know our Jennifer Eccleston is there as well. We'll be checking back with her. Meantime, here in this country, political corruption. Well, it's no stranger to New Jersey, and according to the FBI, it is back for another visit.

Eleven public officials were arrested today, including a mayor, a state assemblyman, and one man who is reportedly both a mayor and a state assemblyman.

CNN Senior Correspondent Allan Chernoff has the details.

And boy, this is a huge blow and a big bust.

ALLAN CHERNOFF, CNN SR. CORRESPONDENT: Absolutely. Eleven people, as you mentioned, 11 public officials and one private citizen, and they are charged here in this arrest with actually arranging insurance services and roofing services, taking bribes in order to make these arrangements.

The arrests made this morning and the court appearance is expected this afternoon. Let's go through the names.

First of all, State Assemblyman Alfred Steele, he is also an undersheriff in the county of Passaic, New Jersey. He is charged with taking bribes of more than $15,000 to arrange insurance services. Also, State Assemblyman Mims Hackett. He is also the mayor of Orange, New Jersey, and he's charged with accepting a $5,000 bribe for arranging insurance services in his city. As well as Passaic mayor Samuel Rivera, charged with accepting, again, a $5,000 bribe for arranging insurance services.

And all of these gentlemen allegedly were promised additional cash.

We've spoken with the offices for all three. They all had absolutely no comment. We have not been able to reach attorneys representing the three. We don't even know yet if they have arranged for legal representation just yet.

Also, this investigation started in the summer of 2006. The FBI is setting up a sting operation.

It set up a fake insurance brokerage service, and then meetings were arranged with these public officials. In addition, there were five school board members from the town of Pleasantville, also arrested.

So Fredricka, certainly a very big sting operation here, more arrests made, and this is just the latest example of corruption charges in New Jersey. New Jersey has heard so much on this topic -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: All right. Allan Chernoff, thanks so much. Remarkable. This is a big bust, and to hear that it might get even bigger, well, that's pretty unsettling.

Thanks so much. LEMON: From Germany, we hear more suspects are being tracked one day after a major terrorism bust. Among the potential targets of the alleged plotters, U.S. military bases, where thousands of American families live, work and serve.

CNN's Frederik Pleitgen is outside Ramstein Air Base today -- Frederik.

FREDERIK PLEITGEN, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Yes, Don. It's good to see you.

Well, this investigation here in Germany is moving forward very quickly. The German authorities here say that they are looking for further possible suspects not just here in Germany, but in other countries as well. And of course as you said, the Ramstein Air Force Base in Germany was one of the potential targets of these would-be terrorists.

And we were able to talk to some of the people who are working here and serving here and see how they feel for their safety here in Germany.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN (voice over): Security is also tight at Ramstein Air Base in Germany, but since the alleged terror conspiracy was uncovered, soldiers on guard duty here seem to be looking just a little more closely. Ramstein is one of the U.S. military's transport hubs for Iraq and Afghanistan. It may have been one of the intended targets of the alleged terrorists.

While none of the soldiers was willing to talk to us, American civilians working or visiting the base say they are anxious.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I am very concerned about it, yes. But it's just that I'm not going to let it control my life.

UNIDENTIFIED MALE: We're living right next -- close to the base. And it's kind of shocking to see how something could be so close to us. And just a little scared.

PLEITGEN: But Tammy Dean (ph) and Linda Clay (ph), who are both married to U.S. servicemen here, say they feel safe in towns close to the base, even if the news on Wednesday was a shock.

UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: I think the security on base is pretty good. I mean, we're still proud to be here. And I think it was an eye-opener.

PLEITGEN: An eye-opener for the German government as well. Investigators say the three suspects, two German converts to Islam and a Turk, were motivated by a deep hatred of the Untied States. Officials tell CNN they had acquired sophisticated detonators for the explosives they had stored, explosives made of the same material as those used in the London terror attacks in 2005. And authorities are looking for others in Germany and beyond whom they believe may have ties to the plot.

Officials say investigators have begun sifting through evidence gathered at raids at over 30 locations in Germany over the past two days.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

PLEITGEN: And Don, what German investigators are also saying is that these potential terrorists had the training and also the hardware to carry out a terrible, terrible terrorist attack. And those detonators, they say, would have enabled them to detonate those bombs very, very precisely, and that would have made those massive amounts of explosives just that much more lethal -- Don.

LEMON: And we can only imagine.

OK. Frederik Pleitgen, thank you very much for your report.

WHITFIELD: A desperate search is under way along Nicaragua's Caribbean coast. That's where Hurricane Felix slammed ashore Tuesday, blowing away villages, flooding rivers, killing at least 48 people. And dozens more are missing. What's left of that Category 5 storm is still dumping rain on neighboring Honduras, El Salvador and Guatemala.

Mopping up after Henriette. The one-time hurricane is now a tropical depression after plowing into Mexico twice. First Baja, California, on Tuesday, flooding seaside communities and killing at least nine people there, and then it hit again near the port city of Guamas (ph) yesterday. Today it's dumping rain on Arizona and New Mexico.

(WEATHER REPORT)

LEMON: He's been talked about, analyzed and assessed from virtually every angle. And that was before, before he entered the race for the White House. Now Fred Thompson has made it official, and the Hollywood actor chose a showbiz setting, of course, to make his announcement.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

FRED THOMPSON (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: And that' one of the things I wanted to talk to you about.

JAY LENO, "THE TONIGHT SHOW WITH JAY LENO": All right. All right.

THOMPSON: I'm running for president of the United States.

LENO: All right!

(APPLAUSE)

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So, Fred Thompson is officially a candidate. That means our Bill Schneider can offer his official analysis of Thompson's chances.

Bill joins me now from Washington.

OK, Bill, what is the significance of going on "The Tonight Show"? Big audience.

WILLIAM SCHNEIDER, CNN SR. POLITICAL ANALYST: Well, Fred Thompson said right after he made that statement, it starts right now. Well, no it doesn't.

It started some time ago. And a lot of people are wondering, what's taken him so long?

He didn't show up for the debate in New Hampshire last night, sponsored, co-sponsored by the New Hampshire Republican Party. Well, the New Hampshire voters are very jealous of their first in the nation prerogative and they're very demanding. And they want the candidates to be there, not in a TV studio in Burbank.

In fact, the debate started when the candidates were asked to comment on Thompson's absence. And I thought the cleverest comment came from Rudy Giuliani, who said, "I think he" -- that is, Fred Thompson -- "has done a pretty good job playing my part on 'Law & Order'. I personally prefer the real thing," he said.

LEMON: Yes. And you know, I saw that and I thought that was very interesting.

You know, there was -- of course the Iraq war came up, as it came up in the Democratic debates as well. Let's listen to an exchange about the Iraq war and then we'll talk about it, Bill.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

REP. RON PAUL (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: We've dug a hole for ourselves and we've dug a hole for our party. We're losing elections and we're going down next year if we don't change it.

MIKE HUCKABEE (R), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: Even if we lose elections, we should not lose our honor. And that is more important than the Republican Party.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: All right. So tell me about that. What do you think of that exchange? That was pretty heated.

SCHNEIDER: Well, it was a heated exchange, and Mike Huckabee, like most other Republicans on the stage, is a defender of the war in Iraq, joins forces with President Bush. Certainly John McCain is an ardent defender of the policy in Iraq.

But it was interesting because Huckabee used the metaphor that Colin Powell once used. He called it the Pottery Barn metaphor. If you break it, you own it. And he said we went into Iraq and we broke it, and now we've got to fix it and we can't just walk away. A lot of the Republican candidates are taking that line; namely, that it was a mistake, we broke it, but we can't just walk away from it.

LEMON: OK. Let's talk now about experience, because that seemed to come up over and over and over again last night.

The Republicans hammering the Democrats on their experience. Rudy Giuliani at one point saying that no one, not one of the three top candidates, had any experience running a state, a city or a business. Let's -- then yesterday Barack Obama also talked about his experience, because they'd been hammering him on that, and he says he has more than anyone in the race as far as the Democrats are concerned.

Let's take a listen to his thing and then we'll talk about it.

SCHNEIDER: OK.

(BEGIN VIDEO CLIP)

SEN. BARACK OBAMA (D-IL), PRESIDENTIAL CANDIDATE: I find it amusing, this whole experience argument, because I've been in public service for over two decades now. I've been in elected office longer than John Edwards or Hillary Clinton. I've passed more bills, I'm sure, than either of them.

(END VIDEO CLIP)

LEMON: So I remember last night. I think the response I remember most is Rudy Giuliani's comment about the experience.

SCHNEIDER: That's right. We're having a debate now between Obama and Hillary Clinton over experience, with Obama arguing, well, it depends on what the meaning of experience is.

He claims he has a lot of experience in elected office, but not Washington experience, and he argues Washington experience is what the Republicans had and that's what got us in trouble. So they've been arguing over who has the right experience to bring about change.

And in her new ad, Hillary Clinton says she has the experience to bring about change. She knows how the system works.

But I thought the final point on that was made by Rudy Giuliani last night, who said, "My real concern is that you have three leading Democrats candidates," meaning Clinton, Obama and John Edwards, "none of which has ever run a city, a state or a business." Meaning you want experience, fellows? Take a look at my experience.

LEMON: He said it. All right.

Bill Schneider, thank you, as usual. We appreciate your perspective here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

At 3:00 p.m. Eastern, Thompson gives his first speech since officially throwing his hat into the presidential ring. We'll go there live on air and also online.

And if you can't be with us in the NEWSROOM, go to CNN.com/video to see this speech and his earlier official announcement -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: And sunset now at the cathedral of Modena, Italy. You're looking at a huge crowd out there, as so many folks, mostly Italians, who have gathered in the hometown of a musical great, Luciano Pavarotti, who died of pancreatic cancer.

His body and coffin is to be brought through the crowd of folks there, and right to this cathedral. Many folks just waiting to say their final good-byes, pay their final respects to the man who will be memorialized and honored for the next few days before he is officially laid to rest.

But you see there in his hometown of Modena, Italy, a huge outpouring of those who are awaiting the arrival of the body of Luciano Pavarotti.

We'll be following that.

Wrestlers, football players, their bodies taking quite the bruising. But what happens when their brains do, too? We'll talk with a doctor who studies the effects of head trauma on professional athletes.

LEMON: Plus, they may be tiny, but they can fluster even the savviest grownup. The top five things you should know about newborns.

WHITFIELD: And she's a pop star, a clothing designer and a mom. A busy Gwen Stefani still finds time for our Brooke Anderson at Fashion Week.

All ahead on CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(WEATHER REPORT)

WHITFIELD: Well, Dr. Spock may have written the book on parenting, but let's face it, it's pretty overwhelming when you take your first baby home from the hospital and you just expect it to know what to do. Well, of course new parents are going to make a few mistakes.

CNN Medical Correspondent Elizabeth Cohen is here to talk about the five most common ones.

Something tells me you're not going to tell us all five. We've got to search for all five.

ELIZABETH COHEN, CNN MEDICAL CORRESPONDENT: Not all five. No, you're going to have to look for it.

WHITFIELD: But you'll give us a hint on a couple.

COHEN: Right. We'll give you a couple. We'll give you a couple.

WHITFIELD: Great.

COHEN: It was so interesting to me, Fred, when I started talking to pediatricians. I said, "Are there some things you see parents do over and over again?" And they said yes. And I kept hearing the same mistakes from several different pediatricians, and the one that all of them said was new parents get excited if their newborn baby sleeps through the night.

They bring them home from the hospital and they go in to see the doctor for that three-day checkup, and they say, oh, isn't it great? She slept through the night. And the doctor says that is not great.

WHITFIELD: Not good.

COHEN: Your little tiny baby less than two weeks old should not be sleeping through the night. It actually can be a sign that they are too jaundiced to wake themselves up. They just have jaundice and they're so tired. They're hungry but they can't wake themselves up. They said babies should not go longer than four hours without eating because they can get dehydrated.

WHITFIELD: Yes. They need to be hydrated.

COHEN: They need to be hydrated. And you can see more about this tip and other tips on CNN.com/health. That's up there right now as we speak. It's called the "Empowered Patient".

Just look for the cute little baby.

WHITFIELD: Oh, precious.

OK. One more tip at least?

COHEN: One more, OK. We'll give you one more.

WHITFIELD: Before we click in to this Web site?

COHEN: One more tip. Right, one more tip.

And that's another mistake that a lot of parents make, which is they come home from the hospital and in the first couple of weeks they take their baby to a crowded area. They go to the mall to go shopping, or they take the baby to the movie theater.

WHITFIELD: They want to show their baby off.

COHEN: They want to show -- or they go to church, even.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

COHEN: I had several pediatricians say do not bring your baby to church, because let's say someone down, you know, a few over...

WHITFIELD: Yes. Hacking or something. COHEN: Right, exactly.

WHITFIELD: Yes.

COHEN: And what a lot of parents don't know is, if your newborn gets a fever, that's a two-day hospital stay, guaranteed.

WHITFIELD: Wow.

COHEN: It doesn't matter what caused it. If your newborn has a fever, they need to evaluate it in the hospital. They're going to take blood, they're going to do a spinal tap. It's not pretty. So avoid it by not getting the fever in the first place.

WHITFIELD: So that means don't pass the baby around either.

COHEN: Yes.

WHITFIELD: It drives me nuts when I see that.

COHEN: Right. Exactly.

WHITFIELD: I'm like, "What are you doing?".

COHEN: You know, grandma, and maybe -- but make sure they wash their hands and make sure they're healthy.

WHITFIELD: Yes. All right.

COHEN: Right, exactly.

WHITFIELD: Elizabeth Cohen, thanks so much.

COHEN: Thanks.

LEMON: All right. We want to get you back live now to Modena, Italy. Look at these live pictures happening outside of the Modena cathedral there.

Of course they're there to pay tribute and to honor the life and career of a famed tenor, Luciano Pavarotti, who died this week of a long battle with pancreatic cancer.

Joining us now by telephone, someone who knows this man, actually had to fill in for him back in 1998 at the Grammys when he got sick, the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.

Good to talk to you. Wish it could have been under better circumstances.

ARETHA FRANKLIN, LONGTIME PAVAROTTI FRIEND: Good afternoon. Yes, I wish that it had have been under other circumstances, and I was very saddened to hear that about Mr. Pavarotti.

LEMON: Yes.

Tell us about -- I want to talk to you about the Grammys, but tell me before that, what do you think his legacy is going to be?

FRANKLIN: Oh, undoubtedly, his music, his voice, his performances.

LEMON: We are going to interview a little bit later on in the CNN NEWSROOM -- you've heard of The Three Mo Tenors?

FRANKLIN: Yes.

(LAUGHTER)

LEMON: Yes.

FRANKLIN: I've had them entertain for me privately.

LEMON: Yes. So, you know, his influence and his reach expand across all levels, all types of music. Do you agree with that? And all types of people.

FRANKLIN: Yes, I would certainly say so. Many of my friends had Mr. Pavarotti's records.

LEMON: Yes.

FRANKLIN: And there was Irish Tenors as well.

LEMON: So tell us about 1998. You got the call.

FRANKLIN: Yes, I got the call. Well, prior to that, I went to the Waldorf-Astoria in New York for a prereception welcoming for Mr. Pavarotti prior to the music dinner that evening.

And it was myself, Boyz II Men, and the chairman of Atlantic Records, Ahmet Ertegun. And a number of other people were there to a full room.

And he was not feeling that well that evening. His hip was bothering him. And of course I heard that he was to have hip surgery.

But anyway, we met and then we did the music. He had dinner that evening at the Waldorf in the grand ballroom on the third floor. And after singing "Nessun Dorma," having rehearsed it with Mary Lynch (ph), my classical coach, he rushed to the stage after the performance, and that just did everything for me.

And I was just all but overwhelmed that he rushed to the stage and the way that he did. He threw his arms around me, and he was a wonderful man, just a wonderful man.

WHITFIELD: What an endorsement.

FRANKLIN: Yes, exactly.

WHITFIELD: Sorry to jump in on your conversation.

FRANKLIN: What a magnificent moment, absolutely. WHITFIELD: Yes. You had to be pretty nervous to...

FRANKLIN: I was.

WHITFIELD: ... have been asked to fill in. And then he comes out and applauds you like that?

FRANKLIN: Exactly. I said, "Oh, you have no idea what that meant to me to get that stamp of approval from such a great artist."

LEMON: Yes. Well, he called you -- this was from a different event, correct? He called you after -- did he call you after the Grammys?

FRANKLIN: No, he didn't -- well, at the Grammys he asked me to come to Modena to sing there for some charitable event that he was doing there. He did a series of performances with other artists and he asked me to be one of them. He said he would send his private plane for me, and I said, "Well, I don't know about that. I don't think so."

LEMON: Because you don't like to fly, right?

FRANKLIN: But...

WHITFIELD: You became his new best friend forever.

FRANKLIN: Of course, had I been -- excuse me?

WHITFIELD: You became his new best friend forever.

FRANKLIN: No, I didn't become his new best friend, but we did become friendly. And professionally certainly courteous to each other and respectful.

LEMON: We talked about his legacy. Let's -- what do you think his influence is going to be? Do you think he will continue to influence music?

You know, we didn't -- sometimes after people die, we realize what an impact they had. You know, recently James Brown died, and all of the outpouring of love that we saw from all over the country of people coming -- what do you think is going to be for Luciano Pavarotti?

FRANKLIN: Well, the good thing and the wonderful thing was, he was given his flowers while he was here. And he had to know how very much he was appreciated and loved. He absolutely was one of the great voices of all time.

LEMON: Well, speaking of someone who I think is one of the great voices of all time as well, is there anything in your music catalogue that you would use, any song that you would use to describe Luciano Pavarotti?

FRANKLIN: Oh, my god. "Respect". It would have to be "Respect," I would think.

LEMON: Yes.

FRANKLIN: I thank you very much for your kind compliment.

LEMON: The Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin.

You are quite welcome. And we will leave it at that, "Respect".

We thank you for joining us today here in the CNN NEWSROOM to help us celebrate the life and the legacy of Luciano Pavarotti.

You take care.

FRANKLIN: Thank you so very much.

And CNN is one of my favorite shows -- around the world in 30 minutes and the national.

LEMON: Oh, thank you. The most trusted name in news, of course.

FRANKLIN: Yes. When I come to Atlanta again I'm coming over.

LEMON: Well, come say hi.

WHITFIELD: All right.

LEMON: Well, come say hi.

FRANKLIN: Always wanted to see the studio.

LEMON: Come say hi. And you know what? I have lots of people who have worked with you, producers and correspondents, and they tell me what a great cook you are. They sat around the piano with you. So when you come, will you promise to cook for me?

FRANKLIN: I'll try to bring...

LEMON: Especially some -- you do those greens. I know you do good greens.

FRANKLIN: OK. I'll try to bring you something over.

LEMON: All right. Thank you.

FRANKLIN: Thank you. Bye-bye.

LEMON: Take care.

WHITFIELD: All right. Thanks so much for your time.

LEMON: Yes.

WHITFIELD: And, of course, as we continue to watch the images outside the cathedral of Modena, the hometown of Luciano Pavarotti, you see how many, how many other people have come out to pay their respects, pay homage to this great presence in music, great presence in the performing arts as a whole.

We're waiting for his coffin to be brought into the cathedral there. That's why there's so many people still standing outside. We'll continue to monitor the developments there outside Modena, Italy.

Well, we're going to change the subject quite a bit now, because over and over, wrestler Chris Benoit took blows to his head.

Coming up in the NEWSROOM, a brain surgeon's take on athletes and the long-term risks of head trauma.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

(STOCK MARKET REPORT)

All right. Well, let's talk a little sports now -- or a lot of sports. Pro wrestler Chris Benoit, champion in the ring, authorities say a murderer in the final moments of his life. We now know Benoit suffered from severe brain damage, possibly for years and perhaps that's why he killed his wife and son just before he took his own life. Dr. Julian Bailes of the Sports Legacy Institute has been studying the wrestler's brain tissue and joins us today from New York.

All right. So, Doctor, a lot of folks will say that is a huge stretch to take brain damage as a result of a sporting activity that you're into, and then violent behavior such as in the case of Mr. Benoit, the accusations that he killed his family, and then took his own life.

DR. JULIAN BAILES, SPORTS LEGACY INSTITUTE: Well it is, but our studies from the Sports Legacy Institute show that he had extensive damage throughout his brain, staining which indicated dead brain cells, and their projection. So we think that is a real anatomical correlate to explain -- help explain his behavior.

WHITFIELD: Well, we've heard the argument of concussions and brain injuries from sports, leading to advanced aging or even Alzheimer's, like we heard most recently in the case of NFL player Andre Waters, who eventually then took his life, and after doctors studied his brain found that there was advanced aging.

So now we're taking another step, and we're saying that it might result in behavior that means outwardly hurting others as opposed to taking your own life. How do you try to substantiate that claim?

BAILES: Well, that's true. And we were in the same physicians, the same group that studied Andre Waters' brain as well as others. In every case we've studied, the changes in the brain have been very, very similar. In fact, Chris Benoit is perhaps the most severe.

One of those NFL players is what I call "nearly homicidal," and so Chris is the first one actually to have this bizarre, aberrant behavior, so we don't know exactly -- medicine and science can't explain all human behavior, of course, but at least we have a very specific finding in this case. WHITFIELD: Are you also trying to make the point that there is some pain associated with this kind of brain damage, that the pain that this athlete or the sufferer is going through, makes them have these violent tendencies?

BAILERS: Well, not so much pain, I think, but also the fact that these are parts of the brain that could disconnect, where emotions, where restraint, where interpretation of events and activities, and where our psychiatric being lies.

And so these are very extensive changes that have really maybe disconnected these parts of Chris Benoit's brain, for lack of a better them.

WHITFIELD: OK. And to help you convey to people exactly what you mean, there are graphics, there are pictures here of, say, in the case of Benoit's brain, what the normal, I guess matter would look like versus Benoit's brain, after the kind of concussions that he may have endured from his sport. Can you kind of explain how it's apparent, how you end up seeing these tendencies?

BAILES: Well, on the left is a normal brain and on the right you see the brown pale background but you see also these dark brown spots. And these are dead brain cells, some of these are ghosts of old brain cells, neurons, and their projections. And so this is very extensive. These are part of the changes you would see in anyone with dementia, even Alzheimer's disease, although this is not Alzheimer's.

It's a very similar pathological disease process of degeneration of the brain, and we think, again, an anatomical correlate or reason to help explain his behavior.

WHITFIELD: So in a preventative manner, what do we do with this information? Does it mean providing this kind of information to say the manufacturers of various athletic equipment to make, you know, better helmets, to help protect the head, particularly from concussions of sports, like in the NFL, contact sports or does it mean that you try to make a greater debate or argument to sporting organizations or even parents, et cetera, to discourage their kids from certain contact sports?

BAILES: Well, we don't necessarily want to discourage sports. I think they're great. But it's more research to understand the problem. It's understanding if there are other additional factors which may play into it. It's maybe a more education, a more conservative approach to maybe allowing people once they've had a concussion or suspected a concussion to continue to play or maybe more time off.

WHITFIELD: All right. Dr. Julian Bailes, thanks so much for your time, with the Sports Legacy Institute.

And Benoit's father actually allowed the doctors to examine his son's brain tissue. He says his son told him about his concussions, but there was no record to support it. Hear what else Michael Benoit, the father of Mr. Benoit, has to say. He'll join our very own "LARRY KING LIVE" tonight at 9:00 Eastern right here on CNN.

LEMON: Want to get you back now, live pictures, Italy outside the cathedral where Luciano Pavarotti's body is expected to be carried into, the coffin at any moment now. Thousands have gathered outside here to pay tribute to his life, his legacy, his career, just unbelievable what he did.

We heard from Aretha Franklin just a couple of minutes ago and she talked about what a giant he was, and she said "respect" is what she would say about him.

WHITFIELD: How fitting.

LEMON: How fitting.

WHITFIELD: How fitting that is indeed. Really, you know, it was just nice to hear her talk about how in awe she was of him, you know, how the music audience is always in awe of her, and it's really nice to hear another music great speak about another music great.

LEMON: Legend about a Legend, right?

WHITFIELD: Yes, in that kind of capacity.

LEMON: And for everyone, we want to tell our viewers, cnn.com, you can watch these live pictures if you want to go there. And you can also read from -- hear from viewers all over the world, read what they're saying about the late great, it's fair to say that, Luciano Pavarotti. We'll continue to follow this developing story right here in the CNN NEWSROOM.

Meantime, bound by loss, now banding together in a lawsuit. Families of seven students who died in the Virginia Tech massacre sign up with a law firm that handles wrongful death cases. We'll have details straight ahead. You're watching CNN, the most trusted name in news.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: The families of seven Virginia Tech students killed in a mass shooting are considering wrongful death lawsuits against the Commonwealth of Virginia. Our Brianna Keilar is following developments for us in Washington -- Brianna.

BRIANNA KEILAR, CNN CORRESPONDENT: Don, these families, at least seven of them, have retained the services of a law firm based here in Washington. That is according to that law firm, Bode & Grenier. These are the families of Matthew Gwaltney, Caitlin Hammaren, Juan Ortiz, Reema Samaha, Nicole White, Brian Bluhm, and Michael Pohle, all students who died in the second shooting at Norris Hall there at Virginia Tech.

Peter Grenier tells me that the firm is also in discussions with four other victims families. He says this is very much in a preliminary stage, but if the lawsuits were to be filed, they would be wrongful death claims that allege negligence on the part of the state of Virginia because Virginia Tech is a state school, a publicly-funded school.

The Virginia Attorney General's Office which would represent the state is not commenting on this development and we have reached out to Virginia Tech but we are still awaiting a response from the school -- Don.

LEMON: OK. There's a special event happening at Virginia Tech today. What can you tell us about that, Brianna?

KEILAR: Yes, this is a concert -- it's not a benefit concert but it's a concert that organizers tell us is really just to get a lot of the students and community members together so that they can enjoy themselves. Some really big names are going to be performing tonight. Hip-hop artist Nas, as well as John Mayer and Dave Matthews Band is the final and obviously the biggest performer there.

These artists are performing for free, there's also some corporate sponsors, but again, not a benefit concert, just a chance for this community to get together. And I should mention, Don, that the first responders who served the campus are also being invited for free.

LEMON: All right. Brianna Keilar in Washington. Thank you, Brianna.

WHITFIELD: Well, another performer is under fire for using the N-word, but this time it's an African-American. Comedian Eddie Griffin was performing in Miami at an event sponsored by Black Enterprise magazine. He was pulled off the stage because of his repeated use of the word. There's no immediate comment from Griffin. In the past, white entertainers, including comedian Michael Richards, have come under fire for demeaning African-Americans and, well, now it's beginning to look like black entertainers are facing the same scrutiny with the use of that word.

Coming up in the 3:00 p.m. Eastern hour, we'll talk it over with CNN contributor Roland Martin, the author. He's a nationally syndicated columnist and the author of "Speak Brother: A Black Man's View of America."

BROOKE ANDERSON, CNN ENTERTAINMENT CORRESPONDENT: I'm Brooke Anderson in New York at fall Fashion Week. Coming up I speak with singer and fashion designer Gwen Stefani about her sense of style and her one true love, her family. Stay with the CNN NEWSROOM.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

LEMON: Live pictures now from Modena, Italy, where Luciano Pavarotti's motorcade is just arriving, carrying the body of Luciano Pavarotti, you see, probably in one of these vans that we're seeing here, just getting this information in to the CNN NEWSROOM. This is the streets of his hometown. Thousands have gathered here. You really can't see the scope of it from the camera angle here, but thousands have gathered here in Italy to say good-bye to him.

Of course the official funeral, Fredricka, won't be until Saturday. Friday we will get the official word about exactly what's going to happen, what's going to go on, how they're going to celebrate his life and his legacy. Anyway, there we go. Do we want to linger with these pictures until we see? We'll come back to it. OK. we're going to continue to monitor these pictures from the cathedral in Italy where the body of Luciano Pavarotti just arrived. As soon as we get a shot of them carrying it out we'll bring it here to you so you won't miss it -- Fredricka.

WHITFIELD: Well, she is a pop diva, a model mom and all the rage right now at New York's Fashion Week. Gwen Stefani unveiled her new collection last night which just happens to have the same name as her first solo album. Entertainment correspondent Brooke Anderson went one-on-one with the artist. And if you're -- to talk about all of that -- Brooke.

Hopefully, Brooke, you can hear me. I know it's very busy backstage. Take it away, Brooke.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: You're a singer-songwriter. You're a fashion designer. You're an actress. And you're a mother. Is there anything...

GWEN STEFANI, MUSICIAN: I'm scared (ph).

(LAUGHTER)

ANDERSON: Anything you haven't set your sights on?

STEFANI: Well, you know, I -- all these things just happen. I don't really make big plans and I just follow my passion.

ANDERSON: Do you take your son with you for your work everywhere you go?

STEFANI: Yes, 15 months, he has been with me everywhere. He has already been on 30 flights around the world. We just tour the world together. The one thing that is hard is I don't sleep like I used to. I mean, I'm like -- I'm one of those people that I love sleeping.

But it's worth it. Like, last night, 4:00 in the morning we were up together, you know, hanging out. And I'm like, oh my God, I have the show!

Just with this collection alone, you know, who knew? I was in Japan on tour with my whole family, with my husband and my baby, and on my one day off, I reviewed the entire collection. And they flew it in and I looked at the whole thing at my hotel room, and did an 18- hour day and then they went off and they scrambled and here we are today.

ANDERSON: Is this something that you've always wanted to do? Have you been addicted to fashion?

STEFANI: I never really was into fashion. I always made clothes my whole life. My mom made all of my clothes when I was a little girl. Her mom made all her clothes, her mom made all her -- It just always happens. And every holiday we go to the fabric store, we look at the pattern and I pick something out, my mom would make it, I'd help her. You know, that was when I was little.

It's so arty to be able to have like this theme and be able to go to these costume houses and be inspired by different time periods. I've always been fascinated by the history of fashion.

ANDERSON: Who do you make your clothes for, the glamorous woman?

STEFANI: I make the clothes that I make are for me, just for me. It's very, very selfish and very sinful. My most focused, my most mature collection I've done.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

ANDERSON: Her son, Kingston, I have to tell you, really stole the show with his appearance. He was so adorable. I want to tell you about where I am right now. I'm back stage, the Badgley Mischka show, Fredricka, just wrapped up. So there's a lot of activity behind me. Teri Hatcher was here for that, as well as actress Emmy Rossum. Teri Hatcher recently signed on as their model.

But 65 shows in all will take place here at Bryant Park in Manhattan. Another 65 in various parts around the city. So high profile events very important for a multibillion-dollar fashion industry.

WHITFIELD: Always a lot of fun. Badgely Mischka usually known for all of the wedding dresses, but Badgley Mischka getting into more kind of ready-to-wear or kind of more high-end ready-to-wear if you know what I mean.

ANDERSON: Absolutely. And yes, things that you can find on the rack but are very high quality. In fact, Teri Hatcher was the first celebrity they dressed. So they're getting more into the red carpet fashion as well. Beautiful, beautiful gowns here today by Badgely Mischka. And that's what we're seeing overall across the board with a lot of designers, a more sophisticated look, a more formal look many times, light, aerial, airy, ethereal, (INAUDIBLE).

In one case, Gwen Stefani, she told me having a child has made her look more sophisticated in her sense of style, more formal and more glamorous as well.

WHITFIELD: All right. Interesting, Brooke Anderson, thanks so much for bringing us back stage, cute little finds there, Gwen Stefani's little collection. I was eyeballing it. All right. Thanks a lot, Brooke.

LEMON: Boy, just threw his hat into the ring last night, we want to get you live now to Iowa and talk about Fred Thompson, actor and former senator throwing his hat into the ring. We're expecting him to show up in just a little bit. Obviously he's going to be there. See the big thing that says "Fred08," all the people waiting? WHITFIELD: I like that, "Fred08," catchy.

LEMON: He is going to be there to give his first speech as he has -- after he has thrown his hat into the ring. We have this quick quiz for you -- NEWSROOM quick quiz. What was Fred Thompson's first movie role?

We went...

(CROSSTALK)

WHITFIELD: Do you want me to do the tune again?

(HUMS "JEOPARDY" THEME)

LEMON: We'll tell you after a break.

(COMMERCIAL BREAK)

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